


as lambs in the midst of wolves

by Ford_Ye_Fiji



Series: and love will be your teacher [3]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Any violence is past violence and also its Azula, Azula is messed up, Azula nooooooooooooo, Casual Violence, Gen, Ozai again is just the worst, She kinda scares me actually, Ursa is really trying, Ursa is trying to be a good mom, but it’s not graphic or anything, i guess, idk if she’ll get a redemption
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-09
Updated: 2019-10-09
Packaged: 2020-12-02 02:22:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,004
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20969030
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ford_Ye_Fiji/pseuds/Ford_Ye_Fiji
Summary: Azula wants to know what happened to Zuko.Ursa steps up.





	as lambs in the midst of wolves

**Author's Note:**

> Azula is hard to write right ajaksksks

"Where’s Zuzu?" 

Her mother doesn't answer. 

Azula puffed with frustration, tiny hands on her hips as she turned away from the window, “Grandfather didn't do anything so what happened?" 

Ursa turned sad eyes on her daughter, arms propped up on the table, as if seeing her for the first time, "Zuko has been... banished from us." 

"Banished?  _Banished?_ " 

Really, it had been Ozai who'd been banished from Zuko, but if her husband ever heard her say  _that_ , there  _would_ be consequences. Her fiery little turtleduckling would have to fend for himself now. 

"Yes, dear. Banished. To the other side of the palace with Uncle Iroh. We're not to see him anymore. Or ever again."

Azula folded her arms, rounded cheeks rosy in the candlelight. For once she looked exactly like the small petulant nine year old she was, which was why what came out of her mouth next sounded so terribly awful, "I would’ve preferred an execution." 

Ursa blinked, "Excuse me?" 

Azula nodded as if that had made all the sense in the world, "Father wanted an execution. Or something like that. Well, not wanted, I think. He doesn’t like Zuzu, he’s weak, but he's still an heir. But I think he would’ve preferred an execution over something like  _that_. Zuzu is  _ours_ and not anybody else’s." 

Ursa's mouth opened and closed like a fish. Azula knew that fish were like that because when she’d scooped one of the koi out of the pond, it had flopped around on the ground, opening and closing its strange mouth, and making funny little gasping noises just like that. 

(Zuzu had ruined her fun and chucked the thing back in when he caught her. He’d seemed very cross with her and so Azula had decided the best thing to do was threaten to light his turtleducks on fire again. The resulting undisguised disgust and blatant fear he’d given her was so very satisfying. Well, not completely satisfying. Something had twisted a little inside her, she didn’t particularly like that expression being directed at her from Zuzu. Father said that it was good for others to fear her but sometimes when she’d had a bad day and the eelkoi and the lizardcats and the hawks and even Zuko all scattered like sissies when she really just wanted something to hold, it hurt a little. Just a little. But father was always right. She was to be  feared .)

Ursa leaned forward, suddenly looking very urgent and very frantic, "Azula,  why would you want your brother dead?"

Azula tossed her hair, repeating exactly what she’d heard, "Zuzu isn’t a good heir. He’s weak and he can’t firebend and he’s too nice." She wrinkled her nose, "Weak things aren’t of the Fire Nation. Weakness isn’t  _tolerated_ in the Fire Nation." 

"But... but don’t you love Zuko?" 

Azula nodded, arms crossed, "Yes. He’s mine. I take care of him." 

Ursa seemed even more puzzled, "Doesn't taking care of him not- not..? If you’re taking care of him, how could you even tolerate the thought of someone killing him? Of being cruel to him?"

Azula shrugged, growing bored of the conversation, "I don’t know, but that’s what father does. And father knows everything. So I should be exactly like him. No, I should be better than him!" She grinned. 

Ursa's brow softened, perhaps realizing that in her protection of Zuko, she’d neglected her other child. It had been a little too easy, after all. The girl was absolutely terrifying. The loss of Zuko was reminding her, however, that even though her daughter was being warped into some strange imitation of Ozai, she was still just that.  _Her_ daughter. 

Ursa spoke as if beginning to chide her, "_Azula_." 

Azula looked up, small lips turned into a pout.  


Ursa started again, "Azula, dearest. Your father's love is... is... people are flawed. Your father loves in a flawed way." 

"Father isn’t flawed! Father is perfect!" 

Ursa seemed desperate at the immediate protests, "Azula, no one is perfect- everyone is wrong sometimes-“ 

Azula clapped her hand over her ears, "The Fire Lord isn’t wrong! He isn’t! Zuzu is weak! I’m strong! I’m feared!" Azula pointed at her mother's wide eyes, "See? You fear me! Everyone does! And that’s how it’s supposed to be! There’s nothing wrong with it!" 

Ursa stood, "Azula." Her voice grew firmer, "Azula. I don’t fear you." 

Azula snapped, "Yes, you do! Everyone does! And that’s exactly the way it’s supposed to be! I want to be like father! You fear father, too!" 

Ursa knelt by her furious, hurting daughter, "I don’t fear _you_, Azula." 

Azula was crying and she didn’t know why, "You're weak! Just like the turtleducks! Just like everyone else! Just like Zuzu! Only father is-“ 

Ursa reached out, crossing the impossibly deep chasm that loomed between her and her daughter, and, pulled her into a hug, "I love you Azula, no matter what. No matter how scary you are. Because love isn’t fear, Azula. Love is better than fear." 

Azula didn’t know why she was sobbing into her mother's shoulder just like Zuzu. Maybe now that he was gone  she was the weak one. Wasn’t that terrible? 

Except as she sat there, sobs petering out as whatever was twisted up inside her starting unraveling, she didn’t feel weak. 

In fact, she felt very warm and much  _much_ better. 

No wonder Zuzu had always wanted hugs if this was what they were like. 

The little cold knot that had bunched up under her ribs when Ursa ignored her and doted on Zuko slowly melted away. 

She felt the cold thrill of vicious satisfaction. She had mother all to herself. 

A little niggling voice that sounded a bit like her father whispered very quietly in her the back of her head, " _But if Zuko came back, do you think that she would give even one thought about dropping you?_ "

Azula told the voice to shut up and not to ruin the warmth with its cold words, burrowing deeper into her mother's embrace. 

**Author's Note:**

> My tumblr is hereeeeeeee: https://ford-ye-fiji.tumblr.com/


End file.
